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Not gay? You can still have
fun at Fusion Waikiki

It was like any other Friday night in Waikiki. Sidewalks filled with tourists and rookie police officers, as an endless stream of vehicles inched along surface streets.

Fusion Waikiki Location: 2260 Kuhio Ave., 2nd floor Hours: Open 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. Sundays through Thursdays, 8 p.m. to 4 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays Call: 924-2422

And just as it's done for the past 16 years, Fusion Waikiki opened its doors for another weekend workout with Honolulu's gay community and tourists lured in by the club's pulsating lights and a rainbow flag blowing in the breeze.

As someone who had not yet partaken in the gay bar experience, I figured a sweet 16 party with "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" as the theme was a good reason to check things out. With a couple of straight girls in tow to bolster my heterosexuality, we ventured upstairs without really knowing what to expect.

IT TURNS out we arrived at Fusion during the Gender Bender Lip Gloss Revue, a weekly Vegas-style showroom act with an all-mahu cast.

The club's main entrance is just steps from the dance floor, which doubles as a stage. Take a left, and you'll pass through a seating area before coming upon a lone pool table and the first of three bars.

Head to the right, and there's another full bar near a staircase that leads to Fusion's second level. There's even more room up here, with high tables and booths providing a variety of seating options. Voyeurs will also find this floor appealing, since it overlooks the dance floor and provides a great position to peer at patrons shaking it below.

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F.L. MORRIS / FMORRIS@STARBULLETIN.COM Fusion celebrated it's 16th anniversary, with such entertainment as the "Gender Bender Lip Gloss Revue."

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Things were getting comfortably crowded as Kylee West Williams strutted around, stopping long enough to pluck dollar bills from outstretched hands in the audience. The 2005 Diva of Polynesia and 2005 Miss Venus looked completely at ease, making eye contact with those in the room and oozing sexuality while keeping in time with the music.

On Saturdays, the Paper Doll Revue provides another evening of boys-will-be-girls entertainment at 9:30 p.m. If drag queens aren't your style, the Men of Fusion perform Fridays at midnight, and there's free karaoke on Mondays and Tuesdays from 10:30 p.m.

AFTER TAKING a few sips of my beer, I began to loosen up and realize how conducive this spot is for partying.

Maybe it was the abundance of blacklights, or the glow-in-the-dark trays that servers carried, but I was going through major Wave Waikiki déjà vu.

The dimly-lit and slightly dingy interior of the two clubs are eerily similar, in an inverted sort of way. And with the advent of metrosexuality, gay and straight guys dress the same at both spots.

Confused yet? There's no reason to be. Just check your inhibitions at the door and head into Fusion Waikiki with an open mind. You might be surprised with how much fun you have here.

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F.L. MORRIS / FMORRIS@STARBULLETIN.COM Miss Universal Show Queen Cassandra Colby parties with, from left, Preston C., Gil C. and Jared C.

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How much for a Bud Light?
The Barfly paid $4.50 for a bottle of Bud Light -- not the cheapest price in town, but average for a nightclub on a Friday night.

Get things to do?
Female impersonators and male strippers add a little extra flavor to the usual pool table, televisions and free karaoke that are common at other watering holes.

What about the grinds?
There's no pupu menu to speak of at Fusion Waikiki. Get something to eat before you arrive -- Jack in the Box is just a few blocks away, and there's an ABC Store on every corner in Waikiki!

And the help?
Not only were the employees here among the friendliest I've seen, but they were also good at their jobs. Door staff did a good job of answering questions, our bartender made our drinks nice and strong, and empty bottles were retrieved quickly and efficiently.